Fin Whale (Balaenoptera physalus) in the Ligurian Sea: Preliminary Study on Acoustics Demonstrates Their Regular Occurrence in Autumn
The patterns of movement of the fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus (Linnaeus, 1758)) in the Mediterranean Sea are still a matter of debate. Feeding aggregations are well known in the Corso-Liguro-Provençal Basin from July to September, but little is known for the autumn and winter seasons. Passive aco...
Published in: | Journal of Marine Science and Engineering |
---|---|
Main Authors: | , , , , , |
Format: | Text |
Language: | English |
Published: |
Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute
2021
|
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse9090966 |
id |
ftmdpi:oai:mdpi.com:/2077-1312/9/9/966/ |
---|---|
record_format |
openpolar |
spelling |
ftmdpi:oai:mdpi.com:/2077-1312/9/9/966/ 2023-08-20T04:05:26+02:00 Fin Whale (Balaenoptera physalus) in the Ligurian Sea: Preliminary Study on Acoustics Demonstrates Their Regular Occurrence in Autumn Laura Pintore Virginia Sciacca Salvatore Viola Cristina Giacoma Elena Papale Giacomo Giorli agris 2021-09-06 application/pdf https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse9090966 EN eng Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute Physical Oceanography https://dx.doi.org/10.3390/jmse9090966 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Journal of Marine Science and Engineering; Volume 9; Issue 9; Pages: 966 fin whale Balaenoptera physalus Mediterranean Sea Ligurian Sea acoustic detection Text 2021 ftmdpi https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse9090966 2023-08-01T02:37:51Z The patterns of movement of the fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus (Linnaeus, 1758)) in the Mediterranean Sea are still a matter of debate. Feeding aggregations are well known in the Corso-Liguro-Provençal Basin from July to September, but little is known for the autumn and winter seasons. Passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) was implemented in the Ligurian Sea to overcome this gap and to investigate the temporal and spatial variation of fin whale acoustic presence. From July to December 2011, five autonomous recorders were deployed at between 700 and 900 m depths. Fin whale calls were automatically detected almost every day, with higher vocalization rates in October, November, and December. Furthermore, daily vocalization rates were higher during light hours, and closer to the coast. These outcomes suggest that not all the individuals migrate, staying in the area also during autumn for feeding or breeding purposes. The dial cycle of vocalization might be related to feeding activities and zooplankton vertical migration, whereas the proximity to the coast can be explained by the morphology of the area that promotes the upwelling system. Although this work only represents a six-month period, certainly it suggests the need for a larger spatial and temporal PAM effort, crucial for species management and for mitigating possible impact of anthropogenic activities at the basin level. Text Balaenoptera physalus Fin whale MDPI Open Access Publishing Journal of Marine Science and Engineering 9 9 966 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
MDPI Open Access Publishing |
op_collection_id |
ftmdpi |
language |
English |
topic |
fin whale Balaenoptera physalus Mediterranean Sea Ligurian Sea acoustic detection |
spellingShingle |
fin whale Balaenoptera physalus Mediterranean Sea Ligurian Sea acoustic detection Laura Pintore Virginia Sciacca Salvatore Viola Cristina Giacoma Elena Papale Giacomo Giorli Fin Whale (Balaenoptera physalus) in the Ligurian Sea: Preliminary Study on Acoustics Demonstrates Their Regular Occurrence in Autumn |
topic_facet |
fin whale Balaenoptera physalus Mediterranean Sea Ligurian Sea acoustic detection |
description |
The patterns of movement of the fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus (Linnaeus, 1758)) in the Mediterranean Sea are still a matter of debate. Feeding aggregations are well known in the Corso-Liguro-Provençal Basin from July to September, but little is known for the autumn and winter seasons. Passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) was implemented in the Ligurian Sea to overcome this gap and to investigate the temporal and spatial variation of fin whale acoustic presence. From July to December 2011, five autonomous recorders were deployed at between 700 and 900 m depths. Fin whale calls were automatically detected almost every day, with higher vocalization rates in October, November, and December. Furthermore, daily vocalization rates were higher during light hours, and closer to the coast. These outcomes suggest that not all the individuals migrate, staying in the area also during autumn for feeding or breeding purposes. The dial cycle of vocalization might be related to feeding activities and zooplankton vertical migration, whereas the proximity to the coast can be explained by the morphology of the area that promotes the upwelling system. Although this work only represents a six-month period, certainly it suggests the need for a larger spatial and temporal PAM effort, crucial for species management and for mitigating possible impact of anthropogenic activities at the basin level. |
format |
Text |
author |
Laura Pintore Virginia Sciacca Salvatore Viola Cristina Giacoma Elena Papale Giacomo Giorli |
author_facet |
Laura Pintore Virginia Sciacca Salvatore Viola Cristina Giacoma Elena Papale Giacomo Giorli |
author_sort |
Laura Pintore |
title |
Fin Whale (Balaenoptera physalus) in the Ligurian Sea: Preliminary Study on Acoustics Demonstrates Their Regular Occurrence in Autumn |
title_short |
Fin Whale (Balaenoptera physalus) in the Ligurian Sea: Preliminary Study on Acoustics Demonstrates Their Regular Occurrence in Autumn |
title_full |
Fin Whale (Balaenoptera physalus) in the Ligurian Sea: Preliminary Study on Acoustics Demonstrates Their Regular Occurrence in Autumn |
title_fullStr |
Fin Whale (Balaenoptera physalus) in the Ligurian Sea: Preliminary Study on Acoustics Demonstrates Their Regular Occurrence in Autumn |
title_full_unstemmed |
Fin Whale (Balaenoptera physalus) in the Ligurian Sea: Preliminary Study on Acoustics Demonstrates Their Regular Occurrence in Autumn |
title_sort |
fin whale (balaenoptera physalus) in the ligurian sea: preliminary study on acoustics demonstrates their regular occurrence in autumn |
publisher |
Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute |
publishDate |
2021 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse9090966 |
op_coverage |
agris |
genre |
Balaenoptera physalus Fin whale |
genre_facet |
Balaenoptera physalus Fin whale |
op_source |
Journal of Marine Science and Engineering; Volume 9; Issue 9; Pages: 966 |
op_relation |
Physical Oceanography https://dx.doi.org/10.3390/jmse9090966 |
op_rights |
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse9090966 |
container_title |
Journal of Marine Science and Engineering |
container_volume |
9 |
container_issue |
9 |
container_start_page |
966 |
_version_ |
1774715946397597696 |